John Tucker Must Dieís Brittany Snow will join 1600 Penn as part of the family the show will center on. Snow will play the sister to Skip (Gad), an intelligent and enterprising member of the presidential family who strives for success. As Becca, Snow will be a very fine foil to Skip, who is affable, but far less worried about achievement.

After the pilot was ordered due in part to the addition of Gad to the lineup, NBC made a second announcement. As it turns out, Gad will actually star in the NBC pilot, as the eldest son in the family. While it is often the case that the oldest child is the most responsible, the idea will not prove true for Gadís character, who will be reckless and will cause problems for the family. NBC has already proved a White House-based drama can work, with The West Wing...

It seems like American politics are more contentious than ever these days. The days of reasoned discourse are as extinct as the dodo, but if you're not going to be depressed by every headline, it seems like the only remedy is simply to be able to laugh at it all. Three people who would probably agree with that theory are actor Josh Gad (Book of Mormon), director Jason Winer (Modern Family), and former Obama speechwriter Jon Lovett.